Residents in the Teacher Residency program begin their residency year in June and are immersed in the entire TK-12 school year at their residency site. During this intensive year of preparation, residents earn their Master’s degree and Teaching Credential. Residents graduate from Alder with the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind to be highly effective teachers from the first day in their own classrooms. Read on to see what a year in the life of a resident looks like.

Spotlight on the First Summer Term
(Mid June to Late July)

The Teacher Residency kicks off in June with program orientation and the start of graduate coursework.

• Graduate Coursework: Residents come together for regional coursework. During this time, residents learn about the upcoming year and take their first full-day graduate school courses toward their Master’s degree.
• School Site Connection: Residents will participate in their school site retreats and professional development during the summer. Here, they meet their new school site teammates and learn about logistics and expectations at their school. Residents collaborate with their Mentor Teachers and begin to participate in all facets of the launch of the school year.

Spotlight on the Fall
(August to December)

• Weekly Seminars: Starting in August and continuing through May, residents will attend a full-day seminar once a week with their regional cohort. These seminars cover topics essential to teaching, like building a positive classroom community. They also offer opportunities for team-building with your cohort, discussions on diversity (a wide range of perspectives and lived experiences), equity (fairness for everyone), and inclusion (involving and empowering everyone) in the TK-12 classroom, and targeted teaching practice. Seminars are a great way to connect with your cohort and Partner Director and to bridge the gap between your graduate coursework and your real-world experience in your residency sites.
  
• Graduate Coursework: Beyond seminars, all residents are required to complete hybrid graduate coursework. This coursework is designed to complement your teaching experience and is structured as follows:
  • Asynchronous virtual coursework: For three weeks each month, you’ll complete coursework on your own time.
  • Synchronous and in-person sessions: One week each month, you’ll have a combination of live virtual sessions and in-person meetings. These in-person sessions will be held in your region and will be located at your assigned TK-12 Residency Partner.
    
• Teaching: On the first day of school, residents are introduced by their mentors as co-teachers to their students. Residents gradually take on increasing responsibility in the classroom during the fall. Residents also complete a three- to five-day takeover in November. During this takeover, residents are responsible for all dimensions of teaching and learning in their residency classroom while their Mentor Teacher offers coaching and support. Partner Directors also observe and coach residents as they engage in instruction. Residents work with their school administrators and Mentor Teachers to provide quality instruction, whether in-person or distance learning.

Spotlight on the Spring
(January to May)

• Weekly Seminar: In the spring, seminars take a deeper dive into instruction. The focus is rigorous, individualized, and purposeful teaching and learning. Seminars focus on questioning, checking for understanding, and providing students with targeted feedback, continuously tying field experiences to coursework. As the year comes to a close, residents also begin to take a look back and a look forward, with seminars focusing on edTPA and job interviews.
• Graduate Coursework: Beyond seminars, all residents are required to complete hybrid graduate coursework. This coursework is designed to complement your teaching experience and is structured as follows:
  • Asynchronous virtual coursework: For three weeks each month, you’ll complete coursework on your own time.
  • Synchronous and in-person sessions: One week each month, you’ll have a combination of live virtual sessions and in-person meetings. These in-person sessions will be held in your region and will be located at your assigned TK-12 Residency Partner.
  • Courses in the spring include the Action Research course, in which residents engage in a graduate-level research project they design and execute in their placement classrooms.
• Teaching: Residents continue to engage in co-teaching with their mentor, evolving their responsibilities as the school year moves toward its end. Residents have owned all aspects of classroom instruction by this point. Hence, the focus becomes refining and improving practice in anticipation of residents leading their own classrooms in the upcoming fall. This includes residents engaging in lead teaching and takeovers throughout the spring.

Spotlight on Completing the Residency Year
(May to June)

• Completing the Residency Year: At the end of the residency year, residents finish their final graduate courses and wrap up their time at their school sites. Graduation is typically celebrated in early June, and the final day of the residency coincides with the last day of school at the residents’ school sites.